Health ministry seeks help from private sector to curb over-population

Perturbed over population explosion, the Union Health Ministry has reached out to the private sector for dispensing family planning services in poor performing states. Starting with high population areas, the National Population Stabilisation Fund, under the Union Health Ministry, has invited an Expression of Interest from qualified and experienced agencies for implementing family planning services through Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode (franchising model) in the states of Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Bihar.

FAMILY PLANNING PROGRAMS ARE A FAILURE IN THESE STATES. The performance of family planning programs is disappointing in Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh (BIMARU states) as these states have a swollen Total Fertility Rate (TFR).

TFR is the average number of children expected to be born per woman during her entire span of reproductive period, and India has a TFR target of 2.1 per cent. “The TFR in 23 districts of BIMARU states is above four per cent i.e. 11 from UP, eight from Bihar and two each from Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh,” said Union Health Minister, JP Nadda.